Portable shelters have been developed for transportation to remote sites where they are then set-up for use. For instance, among other applications, portable shelters may be used as barracks, field hospitals, mess halls, kitchens, relief shelters, communication centers, or laboratories. When deployed, in some instances, walls of the portable shelter may extend to create a significantly larger operating footprint than when the portable shelter is transported.
To accommodate for their range of different environments and purposes, portable shelters may have air-conditioners, heaters, or other air handling units (AHUs). However, these units are not easily integrated into portable shelters and often consume large amounts of space. Given the compact nature of portable shelters, these units can therefore detract from their utility.
In addition, depending on the application of the portable shelter or per certain regulations and/or requirements, the interior air within the portable shelter may need to be cycled or exchanged with outside air. However, exchanging interior air with outside air causes heat transfer between the interior and exterior of the portable shelter. Such heat transfer between the interior and exterior of the portable shelter is undesirable because it impairs the ability of the heater or air conditioner to control the temperature of the portable shelter. This results in a need for larger capacity heaters, air conditioners, or environmental control units (ECUs), which translates to higher energy demands required by the shelter. Also, in the military context, such heat transfer between the interior and exterior of the portable shelter is undesirable because it may make the portable shelter detectible by thermal imaging.